Government’s broken promises on heat networks add insult to injury

The Government, which had previously committed to offering a £100 payment to households who use heat networks to warm their homes, has now announced this support will be unavailable. The trade association, which represents more than 150 members organisations, brands the U-turn ‘shockingly abrupt’ and calls for the payment to be reinstated with immediate effect.The financial support was originally offered to provide heat network customers with ‘equivalent protections’ to the majority of the country’s other energy consumers, who unlike heat network customers, are protected by regulations. The regulation of heat networks, which are a proven, reliable and low carbon heating technology, is a gap in legislation the ADE has long been calling on the government to remedy.Caroline Bragg, Director of Policy and Research at the ADE says: “This is an appalling U-turn that adds insult to injury for a sector that is already suffering. Government has acknowledged that these customers should get this support, however they are now leaving them out in the cold.“Further, this adds additional pressure to those trying to serve these customers, as they navigate a changing tide of policy, with many having already passed on such promises to their customers.”“Heat networks are an essential element of the path towards energy independence and a net zero energy system of the future – what we do now and how heat networks consumers experience this Winter will have lasting consequences for the Government's strategy and the sector.“We implore Government to revisit this decision and re-instate the support that was promised. Winter is coming.”Caroline is available for follow-up interviews and media commentary. To organise this, please email external.affairs@theade.co.uk or jonny.bairstow@theade.co.uk.